Obama to Corporate America: Stop complaining

Enough already: “They always complain about regulation,” says President Barack Obama about businesspeople in an interview published over the weekend with the Economist. “That’s their job.” Obama defends his economic policies in the interview and also says the business community has broader responsibilities than just to itself. Here’s more:

So the point, though, is that I would take the complaints of the corporate community with a grain of salt. If you look at what our policies have been, they have generally been friendly towards business, while at the same time recognizing there are certain core interests—fiscal interests, environmental interests, interests in maintaining stability of the financial system—where, yes, we’re placing constraints on them. It probably cuts into certain profit centers in their businesses. I understand why they would be frustrated by it, but the flip side of it is that they’d be even more unhappy if the global financial system unravels. Nobody has more of a stake in it than them.

Candidate Paul?Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky hasn’t said whether he will seek the 2016 Republican presidential nomination. But as The Wall Street Journal reports, his aggressive groundwork seems to point to no other outcome. Paul on Monday begins a three-day, 10-stop swing through Iowa, marking his 10th visit this election cycle to one of the first three states on the traditional nominating calendar. And in recent weeks, he has announced political hires in Iowa, New Hampshire and Michigan—states key to winning his party’s nomination.

‘Mean’ Congress: You’ll be hearing more about the “mean” Congress from the White House in the days leading up to the midterm elections, the Hill writes. Those in President Obama’s circle say it’s no coincidence that with fall elections only months away, Obama is ramping up attacks on a “do-nothing” Congress. Tommy Vietor, a former longtime Obama communications aide, tells the Hill: “All of us have always thought he’s better with an opponent and someone to fight against.”

‘Side issue’:Texas Gov. Rick Perry says unaccompanied children who have streamed across the U.S.-Mexico border are a “side issue” compared to illegal immigrants who have committed crimes. Speaking over the weekend on CNN, the Republican said 203,000 illegal immigrants have been booked into Texas county jails since September 2008. He said those individuals are responsible for more than 3,000 homicides and nearly 8,000 sexual assaults. “I wish the president would respect that desire of Texans and citizens of this country to secure the border,” Perry said, according to Politico’s recap.

Rubio on immigration:Florida Sen. Marco Rubio said Sunday that comprehensive immigration reform will “never have the support” to pass in Congress, and an alternative may be passing it in stages. National Review has a closer look at comments from the Republican, who said: “We’re not debating what to do – we’re debating how to do it. I’m just telling you we will never have the votes necessary to pass in one bill all of those things – it just won’t happen.”